When he bought a tired 17th-century cottage, Giles Kime set out to discover if it’s possible to make an old house as comfortable as a new one.
Marry in haste, they say… and repent at leisure. But when we found the right house in a lovely Hampshire village, we had decided to buy it before our car had even crunched up the drive. The penitence only lasted a few (arctic) months as we decided what to do with our tired 1630s cottage that had been badly extended in both the 1880s and 1950s.
Understanding its past was key to plotting its future. Built as an unassuming hall house, it was embellished in the 1730s and furnished with cutting-edge mod cons, including a hearth and a bread oven. In the late 19th century, a barn was converted to a joinery workshop and another to a saw shed that later became a weaving studio in the 1970s. The heritage statement that was written by our architect demonstrated why a nip and a tuck wasn’t an option; after some pretty shoddy intervention in the past, we didn’t merely want to restore it, but also ensure it will stand the test of time.
Lime render and Benjamin Moore’s Aura paint bring coherence to the complex exterior. Credit: Simon Brown
Buying a house that needed work created opportunities, not least a light, bright, warm space that works for us all. Thermal efficiency was key to this; starting from scratch allowed us to include a raft of features that make our old house feel like a new one; the combination of insulation in floors, walls and ceilings and underfloor heating mean icy chills are a distant memory. The 10 solar panels on an out-building generate electricity and the battery allows us to buy it from the grid cheaply at night.
Even if the property we bought hadn’t included a second building, we would have tried to add one. Not only did ours give us somewhere clean and warm to hide when the builders were on site, it now takes significant pressure off the main house, offering a place to work and entertain — or simply get away from it all. It’s also where we built a plant room, freeing up space in the main house.
The staircase, with its striped Roger Oates runner. The wood panelling is in Calke Green, also from Farrow & Ball. Credit: Simon Brown
Any project is only as good as the advice one seeks (and listens to). It’s not merely the choice of architect that is vital, but all the other professions and trades, particularly if you’re brave enough to manage a project yourself. For us, the advice of our builder, structural engineer, furniture-maker and lime supplier informed all the big decisions we were required to make.
Another invaluable source of wisdom was our conservation officer, whose stipulations included retaining the wonky roof on the Victorian extension and the use of Slimlite double glazing that allows us to have slender window bars. The advice of Farrow & Ball’s colour consultant Joa Studholme and Owl Lighting’s Sally Stephenson were vital in blending the old and new.
The converted saw shed, with a sofa from Love Your Home. Credit: Simon Brown
The one area where we did have to rely on our own instincts was when devising the floorplan. It’s such a personal journey that it needs to be led by the people who will live in the space, with a collaborative architect on hand to sense check decisions. We also discovered that although it’s tempting to assume that one should add as much space as the planners will allow, it’s much more important to ensure that possibilities of the existing space have been exhausted.
One of the benefits of a modest extension is that it might leave room in the budget to pimp up the interior. When specifying materials, fixtures and fittings, we noticed a significant drop in standards since the last time we restored a house 15 years ago. It might sound like a blinding statement of the obvious, yet robust, pleasing materials are key not only to the longevity of an interior, but also the delight of living in it; limestone flooring from Lapicida, a London Grey worktop from Caesarstone and Parador’s engineered-oak flooring do so with aplomb.
A bathroom with Roman-shower enclosure from West One Bathrooms, Caesarstone surround and tiles by Nina Campbell at Fired Earth. Credit: Simon Brown
In the first phase of the two-year project, we had already learnt the cost of getting it wrong; door handles that lost their finish in a matter of months and exterior paint that started to peel in less than a year. In the second phase, we were thrilled to discover Benjamin Moore’s Aura range of exterior paint. Inside, the depth and breadth of Farrow & Ball’s range allowed us to use limewash, emulsion and eggshell in the same hue. We also learnt that, although you can economise on many things, it’s worth investing in proper plumbing from established brands such as C. P. Hart, Waterworks and West One Bathrooms. Handles, switches and plug sockets from Corston were worthwhile investments.
Having jumped through hoops to get here, we’re unlikely to do it again. However, hopefully, we’ll never want to.
Giles Kime is Country Life’s interiors editor.
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